The Boston Bruins have gained a split of their two-game set against the Washington Capitals. The Bruins erased a 3-0 deficit for the second straight game before Brandon Carlo scored the tiebreaking goal with 2:37 remaining in a 5-3 victory over the Caps. David Pastrnak scored his first two goals of the season before Craig Smith tied it. Washington lost in regulation for the first time this season, ending its franchise-best point streak to start a season at nine games. Former Bruins captain Zdeno Chara scored in his second game against his old team. Chara and Daniel Sprong combined for two goals in 11 seconds for Washington, which also received a power-play goal from John Carlson.
Elsewhere on NHL ice:
Chris Kreider scored a power-play goal in the third period of the Rangers' 3-1 win against the Penguins. Artemi Panarin had a goal and two assists and Igor Shesterkin made 25 saves as New York beat Pittsburgh for the first time in their last four meetings.
The Lightning are 4-0 at home after Yanni Gourde scored twice in a 5-2 decision over the Predators. Steven Stamkos notched a goal that made him the team's all-time leader in power-play points with 301.
Jeff Petry had two goals and an assist in leading the Canadiens to a 6-2 win over the Canucks. Nick Suzuki and Artturi Lehkonen each had a goal and an assist for Montreal, while Brendan Gallagher and Tyler Toffoli added scores.
Johnny Gaudreau scored in regulation and provided the winning shootout tally as the Flames topped the Jets, 4-3. Andrew Mangiapane and Christopher Tanev scored in regulation to help Calgary withstand Kyle Connor's two power-play goals.
In NHL news:
New York Rangers general manager Jeff Gorton says Tony DeAngelo has played his final game for the team despite going unclaimed on waivers. Gorton said the 25-year-old defenseman has been assigned to the taxi squad but won't be around the team after an undisclosed "incident." Gorton said Alexandar Georgiev was fine after reports of an "altercation" between the backup goaltender and DeAngelo.
The league has announced the Devils have been forced to postpone three games this week after four more players tested positive for COVID-19 on Monday. New Jersey was scheduled to play the Penguins on Tuesday and Thursday in Pittsburgh. They also had a home game against the Rangers on Saturday afternoon.
NBA
Lauri Markkanen scored 30 points and Zach LaVine added 17 of his 21 in the second half of the Bulls, 110-102 downing of the Knicks. Markkanen scored 23 points and nailed 5 of 7 3s as the Bulls grabbed a 59-55 halftime lead.
In other Monday NBA action:
The Los Angeles Lakers enjoyed a victorious end to their seven-game road trip. Anthony Davis and LeBron James carried the Lakers to a 107-99 victory in Atlanta. Davis finished with 25 points and James provided 12 of his 21 in the final period. The Lakers surged ahead with a 16-0 bridging the third and fourth quarters. The Hawks got within 98-97 on Trae Young's 3-pointer, but James responded with a trey, a block on Clint Capella, a layup and four straight free throws that sealed the outcome. Montrezl Harrell came off the bench to score 19 as the Lakers finished a 5-2 road trip. Young had 25 points for Atlanta.
Jrue Holiday scored 22 points and Bobby Portis added 21 as the Bucks thumped the Trail Blazers, 134-106 to end a two-game skid. The Bucks went 21 of 42 from 3-point range and shot 55.2% overall.
The Rockets hit an NBA record-tying 11 3-pointers in a 48-point first quarter that sparked their 136-106 romp over the Thunder. Eric Gordon scored 25 points in Houston's sixth straight win.
Devin Booker hit a 3-pointer with 1.5 seconds left in his first game since Jan. 22, sending the Suns to their third win in a row, 109-108 at Dallas. Chris Paul finished with a season-high 34 points to go with nine rebounds and nine assists as Phoenix handed the Mavericks their sixth consecutive loss.
The Grizzlies stretched their winning streak to seven games as Gorgui Dieng scored 19 points and Brandon Clarke had 18 in a 133-102 dismantling of the Spurs. Kyle Anderson and De'Anthony Melton added 17 points each as Memphis won its second straight game after a 12-day layoff due to the league's health and safety protocols.
De'Aaron Fox scored 38 points, including 17 straight Sacramento points during the final seven minutes of a 118-109 comeback against the Pelicans. Richaun Holmes had 17 points, 10 rebounds and six blocks for the Kings, who won for the fourth time in five games despite trailing by 10 in the final period.
Malik Monk came off the bench to score a career-high 36 points and make nine 3-pointers in the Hornets' 129-121 decision over the Heat in overtime. Devonte' Graham added 24 points and Charlotte rallied from a 10-point deficit in the final 2:47 of regulation.
Collin Sexton furnished 26 points and Jarrett Allen added 23 with 18 rebounds as the Cavaliers earned a split of their home-and-home series with the Timberwolves, 100-98. Darius Garland had 19 points and 11 assists for the Cavaliers, who had lost four of their previous five games.
The Pistons-Nuggets game in Denver was postponed due to COVID-19 issues with Detroit. Because of ongoing contact tracing within the Pistons, the team did not have the league-required eight available players.
In NBA news:
Golden State Warriors rookie James Wiseman will be sidelined more than a week with a sprained left wrist suffered against Detroit on Saturday. The 7-foot center landed on his wrist when he was bumped coming down from a dunk off an alley-oop pass by Draymond Green with 6:21 remaining in the third quarter of the 118-91 rout of the Pistons but kept playing. Wiseman is averaging 12.2 points and leads all rookies with 6.1 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Oklahoma saw its five-game winning streak come to an end just hours after cracking the top-10 in the AP men's basketball poll. Terrence Shannon Jr. scored 15 points, including four free throws in the final 39 seconds, to send 13th-ranked Texas Tech past the No. 9 Sooners, 57-52. The Red Raiders had their largest lead at 50-40 with 3:21 following 3-pointers by Kevin McCullar and Shannon. The Sooners responded with seven straight points and pulled within a basket before ending a five-game winning streak. The Sooners' winning streak included three straight against top-10 teams. Oklahoma was without starting guards Austin Reaves and Alondes Williams because of COVID-19 protocols, after both also missed Saturday's 66-61 win at then-No. 9 Alabama in the Big 12/SEC Challenge.
Drake earned a victory just hours after cracking the poll for the first time in 13 years. Tremell Murphy scored 30 points and the 25th-ranked Bulldogs improved to 17-0 with a 95-60 pounding of Illinois State. Murphy finished 6 of 10 from 3-point range as Drake easily exceeded its average of 82.2 points per game.
In college basketball news:
Boston College will have only four scholarship players available for Tuesday's men's basketball game against No. 20 Florida State. Coach Jim Christian says he will fill out the rest of his bench with players from the scout team. Christian said the team was off for 11 days and he has only had two practices with the five walk-ons who will be on his bench against the Seminoles.
Texas men's basketball coach Shaka Smart say he had "significant" symptoms while in extended isolation from his team and family after testing positive for COVID-19. Smart returned to the team Sunday and will be on the bench against Baylor on Tuesday. He didn't detail the extent of the symptoms he experienced. But he appeared frustrated that Texas played last week's home loss to now-No. 9 Oklahoma when the Longhorns were missing their head coach, two starters and a key reserve because of COVID-19 protocols.
Purdue's charter flight was diverted to Indianapolis on Monday because of mechanical problems, according to the athletic department. The 24th-ranked Boilermakers left their campus in West Lafayette, bound for Maryland, where they were scheduled to take on the Terrapins on Tuesday. According to a statement issued by the team, Purdue was scheduled to change planes in Indy before resuming the trip.
Top-ranked Gonzaga has announced that Thursday's game against Loyola Marymount will not be played as scheduled due to a COVID-19 related protocol within the Lions' program. The Bulldogs come off Saturday's 22-point win at Pepperdine and now aren't scheduled to play until Feb. 11 at Santa Clara.
DePaul's game next week at third-ranked Villanova has been postponed, one of three schedule adjustments for the Blue Demons announced by the Big East Conference. Wednesday's game against Xavier is postponed due to COVID-19-related issues, and DePaul's previously postponed game at St. John's on Jan. 2 has been rescheduled for Feb. 20.
Kentucky will play at No. 18 Missouri on Wednesday, one day later than scheduled. The move is an adjustment following a weekend pause because of positive COVID-19 testing, contact tracing and quarantining within the Wildcats' program. The pause resulted in the cancellation of Saturday night's meeting in Lexington, Kentucky, against No. 5 Texas in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge.
Gonzaga and Baylor continue their season-long run atop The Associated Press men's college basketball poll. The Zags received 61 first-place votes from a media panel and Baylor had the other three. Third ranked Villanova is followed by Michigan and Houston, with Texas, Ohio State, Iowa, Oklahoma and Alabama rounding out the top 10.
MLB
Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia has retired. Pedroia was the 2007 Rookie of the Year and the AL MVP in his second season – but he played in a total of nine games in the last three seasons because of a knee injury. A three-time All-Star, Pedroia batted .299 with 140 homers and 725 RBIs. He spent all 17 of his seasons with the Red Sox. He played in two World Series and collected a third ring in 2018, when he was injured.
In other MLB news:
The Major League Baseball Players Association has won a scheduling battle with owners. MLB will proceed with an on-time start to spring training and the season after players rejected a plan Monday night to delay reporting by a more than a month. Management proposed to the players' association on Friday that the start of spring training be pushed back from Feb. 17 to March 22, that opening day be delayed from April 1 to April 28 and that each team's schedule be cut from 162 games to 154. As part of the offer, MLB included the expansion of the playoffs from 10 teams to 14 and extending the designated hitter to the National League for the second straight season, a plan the union rejected Jan. 6.
The Mets have acquired pitcher Jordan Yamamoto from the Marlins for minor league infielder Federico Polanco. The 24-year-old Yamamoto was 4-5 with a 4.46 ERA in 15 starts in 2019, striking out 82 and walking 36 in 78 2/3 innings. The right-hander was 0-1 with an 18.26 ERA in 11 1/3 innings over three starts and one relief appearance during the pandemic-shortened 2020 season.
Free agent outfielder Delino DeShields has agreed to a minor league contract with Texas that includes an invitation to spring training with the team that traded him away just more than a year ago. DeShields and hard-throwing reliever Emmanuel Clase were traded to Cleveland in December 2019, with two-time AL Cy Young winner Corey Kluber going to the Rangers. The 28-year-old DeShields hit .252 with seven RBIs in 37 games last season with the Indians, who didn't offer him a contract for 2021.
Left-hander Derek Holland has agreed to a minor league contract with the Tigers and was invited to major league spring training. The 34-year-old Holland is 79-81 with a 4.61 ERA in 12 major league seasons. He went 1-3 with a 6.86 ERA in 12 appearances for the Pirates last year.
NFL
The Kansas City Chiefs have placed a pair of backups on the COVID-19 list as close contacts as they begin their final preparations for Super Bowl 55 against Tampa Bay. Neither wide receiver or center Daniel Kilgore actually tested positive for COVID-19, which means they could still play on Sunday. Both would need to return negative tests throughout the week to get off the list.
Also, Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst and coach Matt LaFleur say they expect Aaron Rodgers to remain their team's starting quarterback in 2021 and beyond. Rodgers had said after the Packers' 31-26 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the NFC championship game that "there's a lot of guys' futures that are uncertain, myself included."
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